United Nations S/ PV.8262 Security Council Provisional Seventy-third year 8262nd meeting Thursday, 17 May 2018, 10 a.m. New York President: President Duda/Ms. Wronecka/Mr. Radomski .......... (Poland) Members: Bolivia (Plurinational State of) ..................... Mr. Llorentty Solíz China ......................................... Mr. Ma Zhaoxu Côte d’Ivoire ................................... Mr. Djédjé Equatorial Guinea ............................... Mr. Nguema Obiang Mangue Ethiopia ....................................... Mr. Alemu France ........................................ Mr. Delattre Kazakhstan .................................... Mr. Beketayev Kuwait ........................................ Mr. Alotaibi Netherlands .................................... Mr. Blok Peru .......................................... Mr. Ruda Santolaria Russian Federation ............................... Mr. Polyanskiy Sweden ....................................... Mr. Skoog United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland .. Ms. Baldwin United States of America .......................... Mrs. Haley Agenda Maintenance of international peace and security Upholding international law within the context of the maintenance of international peace and security Letter dated 3 May 2018 from the Permanent Representative of Poland to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General (S/2018/417/Rev.1) This record contains the text of speeches delivered in English and of the translation of speeches delivered in other languages. The final text will be printed in the Official Records of the Security Council. Corrections should be submitted to the original languages only. They should be incorporated in a copy of the record and sent under the signature of a member of the delegation concerned to the Chief of the Verbatim Reporting Service, room U-0506 ([email protected]). Corrected records will be reissued electronically on the Official Document System of the United Nations (http://documents.un.org). 18-15180 (E) *1815180* S/PV.8262 Maintenance of international peace and security 17/05/2018 The meeting was called to order at 10.10 a.m. Nations, and Her Excellency Ms. Fatima Kyari Mohammed, Permanent Observer of the African Union Adoption of the agenda to the United Nations. The agenda was adopted. I propose that the Council invite the Permanent Observer of the Observer State of the Holy See to Maintenance of international peace and security the United Nations to participate in this meeting, in accordance with the provisional rules of procedure and Upholding international law within the context the previous practice in this regard. of the maintenance of international peace and security There being no objection, it is so decided. Letter dated 3 May 2018 from the The Security Council will now begin its consideration Permanent Representative of Poland of the item on its agenda. to the United Nations addressed to the I wish to also draw the attention of Council members Secretary-General (S/2018/417/Rev.1) to document S/2018/417/Rev.1, which contains the The President: I wish to warmly welcome the text of a letter dated 3 May 2018 from the Permanent Ministers and other distinguished representatives Representative of Poland to the United Nations here in the Security Council Chamber. Their presence addressed to the Secretary-General, transmitting a today underscores the importance of the subject matter concept note on the item under consideration. under discussion. I now give the floor to Ms. Viotti. In accordance with rule 37 of the Council’s Ms. Viotti: I am honoured to read out this statement provisional rules of procedure, I invite the representatives on behalf of the Secretary-General. of Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Croatia, Cuba, “I thank the Government of Poland for Cyprus, Djibouti, Egypt, Estonia, Georgia, Germany, organizing this important debate on the role of the Ghana, Greece, Haiti, Indonesia, the Islamic Republic Security Council in upholding international law. of Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Latvia, International law is foundational to the Organization, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Maldives, Mexico, and the Security Council has a special role to play Morocco, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Norway, Pakistan, in ensuring that it is respected. I welcome Poland’s Portugal, Qatar, Rwanda, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, suggestion that today’s debate pay special attention South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, the Syrian Arab to promoting the peaceful settlement of disputes Republic, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, the United and the Council’s involvement in that process. Arab Emirates, Uruguay, the Bolivarian Republic “The Charter of the United Nations does of Venezuela, Viet Nam and Yemen to participate in not prescribe the use of any particular means of this meeting. settlement for disputes between Member States, In accordance with rule 39 of the Council’s nor does it establish any particular hierarchy among provisional rules of procedure, I invite the following them. Member States are free to choose between briefers to participate in this meeting: Ms. Maria Luiza negotiation, inquiry, mediation, conciliation, Ribeiro Viotti, Chef de Cabinet of the Secretary- arbitration, judicial settlement, resort to regional General; Judge Hisashi Owada, Senior Judge on, agencies or arrangements or other peaceful means and President Emeritus of, the International Court of their choice. The Security Council, for its part, of Justice; and Judge Theodor Meron, President of has many options. It can call on States to settle their the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal disputes and draw their attention to the means that Tribunals. are available to them. It can recommend to States that they use a particular means of settlement, a In accordance with rule 39 of the Council’s power the Council has rarely employed. provisional rules of procedure, I also invite the following to participate in this meeting: Her Excellency “The Council can support States in using the Ms. Joanne Adamson, Chargé d’Affaires ad interim of means they have chosen. It can support the initiatives the Delegation of the European Union to the United of States and other international organizations, 2/97 18-15180 17/05/2018 Maintenance of international peace and security S/PV.8262 institutions or people that try to assist States in jurisdiction over relevant crimes. In the case of resolving their differences. The Council can also Iraq, the Council unanimously adopted resolution task the Secretary-General with trying to assist 2379 (2017), which established an independent States to reach a settlement, or even establish investigative team to support domestic efforts to a subsidiary organ for that purpose — again, a hold Da’esh accountable for its actions in Iraq. power that, since its early years, it has not often The Secretariat has been working closely with the employed. And where States have agreed to use Government of Iraq and other key stakeholders to the International Court of Justice, there is a role operationalize that important mechanism. the Council may play in ensuring that the Court’s “International criminal accountability is judgment is properly observed. Allow me to take this still a relatively new area of work for the United opportunity to call on Member States to consider Nations, but it is already clear that there is room accepting the Court’s compulsory jurisdiction. for improvement in three specific areas. First, the “Let me turn now to another issue of relevance Security Council needs to be the driving force to today’s discussion, namely, accountability to ensure that international humanitarian law, for international crimes. Through its resolutions international human rights law and other relevant establishing the International Tribunals for the rules, norms and standards are fully included former Yugoslavia, in 1993, and for Rwanda, in in any accountability process. Secondly, those 1994, the Security Council has had an undeniable institutions require sustainable funding. Yet, even impact on international law. The two Tribunals as the international community considers creating have laid the groundwork for the development new institutions, funding for some of the existing of international criminal law, a field that barely hybrid institutions has largely dried up, thereby existed before. At the same time, the Council has putting at risk the gains of judicial efforts. Thirdly, advanced the interpretation of the Charter and of effective accountability requires the constructive its own functions, acknowledging the close link engagement of the international community. I between international criminal justice and the encourage Member States to engage with the purposes of the United Nations. The advancement of Secretariat during the process of establishing and international criminal justice therefore falls within supporting accountability mechanisms to help the scope of the Security Council’s responsibility ensure that the framework for the establishment for the maintenance of international peace and of any mechanism conform with applicable United security. The Security Council was also involved Nations standards and policies. in the establishment of the Special Court for Sierra “The Security Council has played a critical Leone and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. role in upholding international law, supporting the “But the Security Council’s role in the fight peaceful settlement of disputes and advancing